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Lyft (LYFT) shares are accelerating higher on news of a partnership with Alphabet's (GOOG) Waymo to launch fully autonomous ride-hailing in Nashville by 2026. The move helps close the competitive gap with Uber (UBER), which already operates Waymo robotaxis in Austin and Atlanta. Under the agreement, customers will initially hail Waymo autonomous vehicles via the Waymo app, with integration into LYFT’s platform expected later in 2026.

• LYFT’s Flexdrive unit will manage fleet operations for Waymo’s AVs in Nashville, providing maintenance, logistics, and support infrastructure.
• The partnership adds momentum to LYFT’s broader autonomous vehicle push. In July, LYFT acquired European ride-hailing platform FREENOW, gaining access to 180 cities and 6.3 mln users.
• LYFT recently announced a separate partnership with Baidu (BIDU) to deploy its Apollo Go robotaxis across key European cities using LYFT’s expanded network via FREENOW.

Briefing.com Analyst Insight:

Lyft is finally moving more aggressively into autonomous mobility, and this Waymo expansion is a critical step toward competitive parity with UBER. While UBER had an early lead through deeper Waymo integration, LYFT’s dual-pronged strategy -- with Waymo in the U.S. and BIDU in Europe -- gives it a global runway for AV scaling. The use of Flexdrive for fleet management adds vertical integration that could prove operationally and financially advantageous.

Still, questions remain. LYFT’s delayed platform integration (post-2026) and limited AV exposure to date mean execution risk is high. But for now, the market is rewarding LYFT’s bold moves in the robotaxi race -- especially as UBER trades lower on investor concern over potential share loss in Nashville.